The Demographics of Fun: Why New Year’s Partiers Look To Social Media

Did you know that next to Christmas, New Year’s Eve is one of the year’s top holidays for purchasing? And since roughly 16.8% of the American population plans to spend this party night out of their homes, you need to know how the facts that could put you ahead of the competition:

If you’re a bar, restaurant, or club owner, get ready for high consumer spend:

•16.8% of the American population spent their last New Year’s Eve celebration in a bar, restaurant, or club (roughly 50 million Americans) (source)

•New Year’s Eve is all about fun, taking the #1 title for alcohol consumption and purchase rates, as well as #5 favorite overall holiday (source 1) (source 2)

•People who do go out are in a better position to spend freely, as the average income for NYE celebrators that dine out is between $50,000 and $100,000 (source)

Because New Year’s Eve Patrons Are The Definition of Social Creatures:

•72% of all internet users are active on social media every day. That number increases to 89% of 18-29- year-olds (the demographic of individuals most likely to ‘go out’ on NYE) (source)

•More pictures than text is expected this New Year’s. That makes sense, as 50 million users have signed up for Instagram in the past 6 months alone. (source)

•Americans spend an average of 8 hours a month on Facebook, looking for amusement, checking in on what friends are doing, and basing their own decisions on what they see. (source)

And this can directly impact your sales:

•46% of food and drink service owners say that social media has the most significant impact on their business, beating out online promotions (31%) and QR code coupon tactics (23%)

•That same food service industry study concluded that technology is now the paramount factor to drive sales growth and enhance customer engagement (source)

•Social does have ROI: Customer testimonials and social recommendations have the highest rating of effectiveness (89%) on other consumers than any other type of advertising or content marketing. (source)

•But best of all, social is part of your audience’s natural behavior: Nearly 93% of social media users have either made or received a recommendation for a product or service (source)

So what can we learn from this?

New Year’s Eve celebrators are looking for fun, and turn to social media to make decision on where to spend their cash freely. But there’s a lot of competition on this one night, which is why you need to follow these strategic steps for your business:

Pinpoint the social audiences in your area that are more likely to influence others’ decisions. When you focus on local, you can expand the reach of third-party recommendations, entice more local foot-traffic, and ultimately increase sales.

Since people will be snapping shots freely on NYE, make that a selling point for your party over competitors with visual displays. Your audiences will not only have more fun, but that also be simultaneously sharing recommendations for potential bar-hoppers and late-comers throughout the night.

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